White noise vs brown noise for tinnitus: how the two sound
This page compares two sounds. It does not compare two treatments, and no research shows that either noise colour changes tinnitus itself. What follows is acoustics and listening comfort, so you can pick the one you can stand having on at 2am.
The acoustic difference in one paragraph
White noise carries equal energy at every frequency, so the high end dominates what you hear. It reads as hiss: escaping air, untuned radio, a hard shower. Brown noise rolls off sharply as pitch rises, which puts most of its energy low down. It reads as rumble: a waterfall heard through a wall, a plane cabin, heavy wind. Pink noise sits between the two. Our guide to noise colours covers the spectra properly if you want the numbers.
Why the difference matters at a tinnitus bedside
Most people describe tinnitus as a high tone or a hiss. That has one practical consequence worth stating plainly: brown noise puts its energy nowhere near a high ringing tone, so at a low volume it may leave that tone perfectly audible. White noise sits in the same broad region and covers more of it at the same level. That is a statement about two spectra overlapping. It is not a claim that white noise does anything for your tinnitus, and the controlled evidence does not support that claim.
Comfort pulls the other way. A steady high hiss is tiring to listen to for eight hours, and many listeners find brown noise easier to leave running. So the choice tends to come down to a trade between overlap and fatigue, which is why the honest answer is to test both rather than to read a recommendation.
A comparison you can actually make
| White noise | Brown noise | |
|---|---|---|
| character | bright hiss | low rumble |
| energy | flat across the spectrum | concentrated in the low end |
| at low volume | still audible in the high range | can disappear under room tone |
| over eight hours | can feel harsh | usually easier to tolerate |
| listen | play white noise | play brown noise |
Run the test over two nights, not two minutes. Set the same low volume both times, keep the timer the same, and change nothing else. The sound that stops attracting your attention is the sound that works for you, and that is a preference, not a result.
Neither colour settles it. Some people land on pink noise or rain instead, which have their own texture and no bass weight.
What this comparison cannot tell you
Nothing on this page says either sound reduces tinnitus, because no good evidence says so. The 2018 Cochrane review of sound therapy for tinnitus found no evidence to support the superiority of sound therapy over waiting list control, placebo or education with no device, and it graded that evidence low quality. It tested clinical hearing aids and sound generators, so it neither backs nor rules out a noise colour on a phone.
Nor can any page pick a frequency for you. Slo has no tinnitus frequency matching, and naming a Hz value as correct for your ringing would be an invention.
Persistent or one-sided tinnitus needs a medical assessment, and Slo does not diagnose or treat anything. If the ringing bothers you enough to research noise colours at midnight, ask an audiologist about cognitive behavioural therapy, which has stronger clinical support than sound does.
Questions people ask
Which colour is better for tinnitus?
Neither, as far as controlled research goes. Pick by comfort. White noise overlaps a high ringing tone more closely, brown noise is gentler over a long night.
Is brown noise too quiet to cover ringing?
It can be, at a low volume, because its energy sits well below a typical high tinnitus tone. Turning it up is the wrong fix. Try white or pink noise at the original level instead.
Can I mix the two?
Yes. The Slo browser mixer lets you run both at once, each one lower than you would set it alone. Two layers is plenty.
Read next
- Sound masking for tinnitus explains what masking is, what people do with it, and where the evidence stops.
Sources
- Cochrane review of sound therapy for tinnitus, Sereda and colleagues 2018: CD013094
- Tinnitus page at the US National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders
Explore more sounds in Slo
Stack two or three sounds, keep the blend, and let the timer stop it. Slo, on iOS, Android and Mac.
